ByMatthew ShaerNovember 1, 2012

Verizon is rolling out a fleet of mobile charging stations to West Virginia, Ohio, and New Jersey residents affected by Hurricane Sandy. At each Wireless Emergency Communication Center, as Verizon calls the trucks, you can charge your phone or in some cases hop on a laptop to send relatives an email. You can find a full list of station locations here – and no, you don't need to be a Verizon customer to take advantage of the service.

Meanwhile, at least for the time being, charging and domestic calls are free at Verizon stores across the northeast.

"Anecdotally, Verizon Wireless service has fared better than service from other carriers in parts of New York and New Jersey, where the storm has done the most damage. But there have been complaints of poor service on Long Island, as well as in Lower Manhattan," she writes.

In related news, PC Magazinereports that Verizon has installed a temporary wireless antenna in Jersey City, which was hit especially hard by the storm. The company is working simultaneously to restore data service to other parts of the New York metro area.

"Verizon has been able to reroute and restore critical services at several key facilities that were affected by the historic flooding and subsequent power outages on Monday night," a Verizon rep told PC Magazine. "Company engineers and technicians have returned several of these facilities to normal operations, and efforts continue to restore the remaining facilities."